Rapcast #162: The Doctor Is In – Gunning for a Model Across the Seas

This week on The Dr. is In with PhdSteve, we debut the new intro courtesy of Christopher Bond of Evil Dead the Musical and Night of the Living Dead Live. Then we talk Raptors ball with Zarar who is well known for his love of Arsenal Football club. I ask Zarar to explain the Arsenal model from the Barclays Premier League of English Soccer and if Ujiri’s time with the Kroenke family (who own the Denver Nuggets, the NFL St. Louis Rams, and Arsenal) has influenced his thinking and if the Toronto Raptors may be poised to go in a similar direction.

If the Arsenal model is based on buying low and developing talent in-house to compete with the big names and big spenders, can the Raptors do this? What about draft picks? What about the talent already in house? And what about the coach? Can Dwayne Casey be the NBA equivalent of Arsene Wenger?

Switching to related topics:

Is the Andrea Bargnani case open and shut?

Will the supposed front-office influence on the coach continue?

Is front-office stability important or overrated? Validity of Alvin Williams’ exit comments?

What is the difficulty in reconstructing a team in the NBA versus in football?

The importance of dealing with Bargnani and Kleiza, and how it could influence our free-agent signings (Umm..Tony Allen).

Does Ujiri see players more for what they are, and not for what they might be?

The DeMar DeRozan Dilemma – is being a “gym rat” his hallmark and is he worth retaining?

Is Jonas Valanciunas a “Casey type of guy”? Big disagreement here

Do big men take longer to develop? Can you ever “become” a defensive center?

Addressing the bench

Bring back the purple + rr9.in

Plus, Zarar makes an announcement for the Raptors Republic team for fall 2013 and we ponder what will the sites name be if the Raptors actually re-brand successfully?

A big thank you to the team who made the new intro for The Doctor Is In possible: Franco Cipolla produced it. It was mixed by Jamie Lamb. The Voice Talent was Trevor Martin, Debbie Bond & Erin Schipper. Written and poorly rapped by Christopher Bond.